phytoplankton

Phytoplankton (/ˌfaɪtoʊˈplæŋktən/) are the autotrophic, mixotrophic and heterotrophic component of the plankton community. The name comes from the Greek words φυτόν (phyton), meaning "plant", and πλαγκτός (planktos), meaning "wanderer" or "drifter".[1][2] Most phytoplankton are too small to be individually seen with the unaided eye. However, when present in high enough numbers, they may appear as a green discoloration of the water due to the presence of chlorophyll within their cells (although the actual color may vary with the species of phytoplankton present due to varying levels of chlorophyll or the presence of accessory pigments such as phycobiliproteins, xanthophylls, etc.).

For more information about phytoplankton check the Wikipedia article here

ZME Science posts about phytoplankton

Icelandic volcanic eruption yields bad news for iron fertilization geoengineering

Fri, Mar 22, 2013

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In one of the first articles I’ve ever written on ZME Science, all the way back in 2007 (has it really been 6 years? Wow!), I was telling you about an interesting plan of cooling global temperatures by fertilizing the world’s oceans with iron. This would in cause turn a phytoplankton explosion, which would suck [...]

Massive algae bloom in Arctic region raises crucial questions

Sat, Jun 9, 2012

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NASA announced a truly unexpected phenomena, observed under the shrinking Arctic ice: a massive algae bloom under the ice. Not long ago, the life of this crucial plant seemed to suffer greatly, a worrying phenomena, as algae produces much of the world’s oxygen. The same year that NASA researchers launched the Icescape expedition to the [...]

Fool’s gold is ocean’s fertilizer

Tue, May 10, 2011

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Bacteria and small plants at the bottom of the ocean require significant quantities of iron to survive and grow, just like us humans do. But their situation is extremely different, and they can’t just opt for an iron rich diet. So where does their iron come from ?   Pyrite, or fool’s gold (as it [...]

NASA satellite shows awesome phytoplankton bloom

Wed, Jan 5, 2011

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When NASA satellites and biology come together in the same sentence, you just know something awesome is going to come up; this was the case with a phytoplankton bloom observed off the coast of Argentina. Two strong currents stirred the needed combination of nutrients, sald and microscopic organisms, and then sunlight did all the rest [...]

Iron Fertilization Of Oceans against global warming

Wed, Sep 26, 2007

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  Global warming is a hot topic everywhere in the world, and probably have ourselves to blame for that. The careless use of resources combined with greed and lack of respect for mother earth could be what leads to our demise. The signs are everywhere but at first they were more obvious in the oceans. [...]

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